Serum levels of soluble intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (sICAM-1) as a potential marker of disease activity and remission in patients with chronic hepatitis C.
OBJECTIVE
To assess whether serum levels of sICAM-1 can be correlated with clinical parameters associated with liver inflammation in chronic hepatitis C patients before and after IFN-alpha treatment and whether in patients who respond to this treatment sICAM-1 levels correlate with relapse or sustained response.


METHODS
34 patients diagnosed with chronic active hepatitis C were administered IFN-alpha at a dose of 9 mU per week for 12 months. In all patients sICAM-1 levels were measured by ELISA before treatment and after 6 and 12 months of therapy. In addition, sICAM-1 levels were measured in all patients who responded to IFN-alpha at 6-month intervals after stopping treatment, for a total 2-year follow-up.


RESULTS
In all patients, a significant correlation between sICAM-1 levels and the degree of hepatic involvement at biopsy was observed before starting the treatment. sICAM-1 levels remained elevated throughout the study in all patients who did not respond to IFN-alpha therapy, whereas they showed a significant decrease in all patients exhibiting normal ALT levels following IFN-alpha administration. Moreover, a slow but steady decrease in sICAM-1 serum concentrations to values overlapping those of control subjects was observed in sustained responders after a 2-year follow-up; in contrast, all the patients who relapsed showed a further increase in sICAM-1 levels.


CONCLUSIONS
These observations suggest that measurement of sICAM-1 serum levels in chronic hepatitis C patients may be useful for monitoring liver inflammation, especially considering that ALT values may only reflect hepatocellular necrosis while invasive procedures, such as follow-up-liver biopsies, are often not well accepted by patients. Further studies will be necessary to assess whether sICAM-1 levels may be used in helping decide the optimal dose and duration of IFN-alpha treatment.
Gattoni
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A
Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine F. Magrassi, II University of Naples School of Medicine, Italy.
Romano
C
C
Cecere
A
A
Caiazzo
R
R
De Bellis
A
A
Bizzarro
A
A
D000328:Adult; D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood; D015415:Biomarkers; D005260:Female; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000097:blood* / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D018799:Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1 / Q000097:blood*; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D012995:Solubility
D015415:Biomarkers; D000077190:Interferon alpha-2; D016898:Interferon-alpha; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D018799:Intercellular Adhesion Molecule-1; D000410:Alanine Transaminase